Momento
by Malta Kano
Summary: [Yaoi] Naruto wants to remember a special person, but can't. Could this person be someone he least expected, or someone very close? R&R please!
1. Name

**Momento**** :**** The boy who wrote my name**

**Rating: **PG-13****

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto. too bad, huh?

**Author's Notes: **The first time I've written a Naruto fanfiction, I was kinda reluctant to write on because I haven't finished the series at all. I'm still keeping whomever Naruto's paired with a secret. (I can only guarantee you guys that it is yaoi/shounen-ai)  Although the truth is, I really don't who it should be…gets stabbed   Suggestions please?

_"My name?"___

_"Yeah, write it down."_

_"But I---"_

_"What?!!"___

_"I….don't know how to write."_

_Time seemed to play the tyrant. The man stared at him, his eyes wide with shock.  The blonde boy simply stared at him back. Boys his age should be already aware on how to write._

_"Your parents?"___

_"I don't think I have any. . ."_

_"Well, then…go away. I don't want to teach a kid who can't write!" _

_The older man turned his back on the blonde, ignoring the boy's pleas. When the boy realized that doing so would remain futile, he picked up the pen placing the tip on top of the paper, his hands doing rough strokes, strokes of various sizes, his efforts created a mess. _

_Unreadable and pathetic.___

_The boy could feel the tears brimming out of his eyes. _

_"I want to write……my name…"_

_Rough hands caught his, appearing from behind was an unfamiliar face, a boy who seemed to be the same age as him._

_"Hey, what's your name anyway?" He inquired. _

_"Uzumaki, Naruto…"_

_"Oh. Okay!" He replied with a smile. He bent towards the table, coaxing Naruto to do the same. His hand gently guiding Naruto's….the pen moving, forming his name._

_"U-ZU-MA-KI, NA-RU-TO" _

_"There! You wrote it!" The other boy grinned even wider. _

_"T-Thanks…" Naruto could feel an unexplainable rush through his whole body. His eyes looking at the other boy with great adoration and respect. _

_"Well then, Naruto…see ya!"  With that, the boy took off. Shouting at the older man, saying something about how other people should know about his maltreatment to other students._

_"W-Wait!"_

_"Eh?"_

_"W-What's your name?" _

_The other boy looked at Naruto with a sympathetic look on his face.  _

_"My name is---"_

**Naruto's**** POV**

I woke up sweating profusely; the small fan could never get rid of the damn summer heat. Yes, even in the middle of the night, I managed to wake up.

Still forcing myself to remember.

Why….why should I always wake up from that part? Why…? Just when I should already know his name!

Was I…forced to forget?  Did I want to forget?

No….I wanted to remember. I wanted to remember who he was.

Who was he?

Who?

I plopped down my back to my bed, still trying to remember. 

The boy who wrote my name.

**To be continued…..**

**Author's Notes: **Good, Bad? Reviews please! :3 I would really appreciate it! Sorry if it's short…but this is just a prologue to the whole story. I cannot more if I get enough feedback and happily, **DO NOT GET ANY FLAMES**. Thank you!


	2. Start

**Momento**** :**** The Start of Something**

**Rating: **PG-13****

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto. too bad, huh?

**Author's Notes: **I re-read the first chapter and I was really upset that I made so MANY MISTAKES!!! And I wanted to apologize to the readers for being so stupid and clumsy. I really liked your reviews and all proved to be helpful when I was thinking of the continuation of the fanfic.

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"Hey, you have bags under your eyes."  Iruka, Naruto's previous teacher pointed out. It was another hot summer day in Konoha and here was Naruto, still eating ramen, yes….so early in the morning.

Eating ramen and ignoring Iruka, well…not on purpose at least. And this has made the young man concerned. 

"Naruto, is something wrong?" He placed his hand on the young boy's shoulder and gently pulled him away from the ramen. "Naruto?!"

"H-huh?"

Cerulean orbs stared at Iruka.

Naruto wearing an expression of shock.

"Hey… I was eating!" Naruto pouted, Iruka face faulted.

They shared a very meaningful moment of silence.

"YOU GOD DAMN LITTLE BRAT!!! I WAS WORRIED ABOUT YOU AND THIS IS HOW YOU TREAT ME??!!"

"I DIDN'T ASK YOU TO!!!"

And that lovely summer morning was spent by Naruto and Iruka with a great deal of violence used to settle the matter.

Yes, another wonderful day in Konoha.

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After the wonderful period of time he and Iruka-sensei had shared by simply fighting and shouting at each other, the exercise had drained the strength out of them and in the end Iruka could do nothing but forgive Naruto.

In fact, he was so guilty that he scolded the child that he had decided to bring him back to his place and take care of him instead. Like a good teacher should.

Naruto felt the large bump on his head that Iruka-sensei had left. He stroked it, and stroked it once more.

"Geez Naruto, stop looking so pathetic" Iruka complained as he entered the living room with a bag of ice in his hand.

"I'm not!" Naruto retorted, this time to shut him up, Iruka threw the ice bag at him to get Naruto's attention. "H-hey!! Watch it!" The boy stumbled a bit as he managed to catch it. Once he did, he gently placed it on the back of his head applying pressure on the lump.

Iruka chuckled a bit as he sat down beside Naruto in the sofa. Oddly enough, they stood silent for a time.

"Iruka-sensei….Did I have any friends when I was young?"

"Why are you asking me that? You should know that yourself."

Although the fact was, as far as Iruka could remember, ever since he met Naruto, the boy never really had any friends. But really now, if he really did say "no" to Naruto…wouldn't it be cruel?

"But—I can't remember…Do you…?"

"Hmm…you used to chase Sakura around ever since you were a kid though…." He replied in a mocking tone while nudging the boy.

"O-Other than that!" Naruto exclaimed, his face turning furiously red. Naruto still had this (possibly) childish infatuation with the said girl and it was completely obvious, Iruka smiled wider.

"Kiba always made fun of you, while Hinata was (and still is) always..uhh…acting really weird around you." His former teacher added.

Naruto nodded and took these things to mind. "I can never really say much about Sasuke since he hardly talks anyway…"

Naruto took all the things Iruka said into mind. But Naruto's sudden inquiry troubled him.

"Why do you ask anyway, Naruto?" Iruka asked.

"Because…I told you! I can't remember someone, sensei…." Naruto paused for a while, relieved that he could tell Iruka about this ordeal.

"It feels like a chunk of my memory's been erased….or…maybe…I wanted to forget it myself but—I'm sure…because every night since last week…"

"What, Naruto?"

"….I've always dreamed about this boy…I'm sure he's the same age as me!!! He was nice, when I had to register as a student, he taught me how to write my name!"

But wasn't this slightly odd? Naruto met a boy that could've possibly been his first friend…but he couldn't remember?! This was definitely…beyond the norm, even for a ninja…in some way at least. Perhaps Naruto was only having a stupid dream….

"You should take dreams too seriously, they're not real you know…"

"But---!! Iruka-sensei I know!! I'm sure! What I dreamt really happened!!!"

"Naruto….**It's just a dream.**"

Naruto could feel the blood boilingin his viens, here he was thinking that it was only Iruka-sensei who would believe him. But instead the man could only retort with an answer that insulted him.

"Fine then! I won't force 'ya to believe me!!"

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Meanwhile,Kakashi was spending his morning having his daily recommended ( at least he thinks it is) dose of  Icha Icha Paradise. Whistling blissfully as he enjoyed the peaceful scenery of the dense forest…and the indecent images that flooded his mind thanks to his equally indecent book.

"What was I supposed to do today?" He questioned himself, there was something surely bothering him.

He glanced up to the vast blue sky, still thinking.

"What was I supposed to do today?"

What did he forget?

While still forcing himself to remember some sort of important event, three kunais flew right at him.

Being the skilled (and not to mention experienced) ninja that he is, he easily avoided such a measly attack. He jumped down from the highest tree branch and fell down, still perfectly balanced as he reached the ground.

"Just something to wake you up, sensei."

Kakashi looked up to see his student—Uchiha Sasuke with an annoyed look in his face, his ebony eyes twitching while staring at the older man.

"Oh, we were supposed to train right?"  Kakashi laughed a little, acting the fool once more. But this annoyed Sasuke even more.

"Please try not to waste other people's time" The boy spat out.

Somehow…Sasuke was grumpier than usual. But Kakashi understood why, this boy was obsessed with revenge, this may have been this drive to become a better fighter…but this was the same thing that was ruining him as a person.

But here he was, still teaching the boy to fight, but never correcting his attitude. Did this make Kakashi a bad person? Or was he simply doing his job?

Kakashi's thoughts were cut off, when Sasuke once more calls his name.

What a terrible thing to happen, to a man who simply wanted to finish Icha Icha Paradise this morning.   

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**Naruto's**** POV**

Damn it! And I thought only Iruka-sensei would believe me….!! My feet could only do nothing but run, what Iruka-sensei said pisses me off more than anything else…well…unless it was Sasuke who said it.

The name itself is poison. That arrogant, self-centered, revenge obsessed…. I stumbled inside my only sanctuary….the ramen restaurant…..yes…my eternal heaven.

**BUMP!**

"Hey! Watch where you're going! Dumbass!"

I shook my head, the collision between me and whoever the loser I bumped was strong. I looked up to see who the frickin' idiot was a give him  apiece of my mind. I happen to have one, thank you!

"K-Kiba?"

"Who were you calling a dumbass?!" The dog boy gritted his teeth at me like some madman. Bah, and he still had that dog Akamaru with him. I have nothing against Akamaru, but Kiba was a goddamn pain in the ass.

"Uhh…You?" I rolled my eyes at his stupidity a note of sarcasm that I just wanted to slap on his stupid face.

"Shut up!! You and your…your stinkin' ass!!!"

"Whaddya say?!!!"

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**Naruto's**** POV**

Yeah, so maybe I did get a bit carried away. But Kiba was such a jerk that I just had to fight him!

"Here we are washing dishes because some moron broke public property…Akamaru, share my pain.  Stay with me." Kiba petted Akamaru as he once more got back to working on the dishes. I can't never fully understand this weirdo. He was the one to talk, he ruined the china first!!

My life was going to be much more miserable than I thought.

**To be continued…..**

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**Author's Notes: **Thank you so much for reading! ; I know that the plot is a little slow on developing but I'm definitely going to make up for it on the next chapter. Hopefully, more of the characters will appear and have their own effect on the story. XD

Kiba will definitely be playing a BIG role and so will Sasuke. Some others will also be appearing. Shikamaru, and possibly Neji….O.o;; I really want you readers to be satisfied but things have been…a bit busy for me and I really have a wierd mind.  LOL.


	3. Night

**Momento**** :**** Night**

**Rating: **PG-13****

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto. too bad, huh?

**Author's Notes: **The third installment. I'm really thankful for the awesome reviews. This chapter is probably more on SasuNaru than anything else. There are definitely a lot SasuNaru fans. Ne? 

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"Any more than these plates and I WILL KILL MYSELF." Kiba whined once more, as he lovingly caressed his coarse hands, glaring at Naruto who still wasn't finished with his load. While placing Akamaru on top of his head, Kiba was sure that Naruto would answer back any minute. But he didn't hear anything, other than the water from the faucet, Naruto's scrubbing and the random orders of the customers outside.

This puzzled Kiba, but then—he decided to ignore the matter and head home right after announcing to the owner that he was indeed finished with the dishes.

But something kept on pulling him back.

"Kiba…"

Naruto's voice startled him, it didn't sound like Naruto at all. It was soft and barely inaudible.

"W-What?"

"Do you remember anyone…that….."

"That?"

"Nah, forget it."

The other couldn't help but wonder…

_What was with Naruto anyway? At first he seems so damn spunky, the next minute he's sulking for no reason at all!_

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**Kiba's**** POV**

I just wish Naruto would just tell me his freaking problem! It almost hurts to stay in this place. I never thought I'd say it but—Naruto was making me worry. Something that weird disturbs me. And I thought **he **was a loudmouth.

"Kiba, I used to know somebody….but I can't remember…."

"You can't remember? What's that? Amnesia?"

"Umm….but I can remember everyone else…" Naruto, trailing off at the end of his sentence…sounded like this troubled him….A LOT.

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**Naruto's**** POV**

Whether I tell him or not, would he even believe me? Kiba was a stupid, narrow-minded Dog boy, who probably won't listen to whatever I have to say. But maybe, just maybe….it was worth a shot. I took at deep breath and before I knew it, I talking in an incredibly fast pace.

"I always dreamed about this boy…who..err….registered me for school. I still keep believing that…that dream really did happen. Do you think it's stupid?"

Kiba's eyes grew wide. I don't know why, but he stood there simply looking at me.

"I-I don't think that's stupid. I mean, usually….dreams are kinda like real life…only…you're not awake?"  Kiba answered in way that gave the impression that the topic made him uncomfortable.

"Quit staring…"

"Wha?"

I didn't have a chance to ask him about it, because he hurriedly left the kitchen. I can never understand Dog Boy. Thanks to Kiba I felt even worse than I was feeling, before I ran into him. I finished with the dishes about 9 o clock, and I swore to myself that I must find a new Ramen stall to hang out it…because every time the big lady owner saw me, she looked like she was going to explode.

I needed somewhere else where I could peacefully eat my ramen once again.

It was 9 o clock….I desperately wanted to go home.

Desperate enough to take a shortcut.

 It's not like I was going to die if I did, who cares if the shortcut I'm taking happens to be a big….green….dark….dense….forest.

Okay, I was scaring myself.

The silence was eerie, was it always this quiet here?!! And those…those animal sounds!! They…sound so…fierce… Okay….so I was freaking out, I found that my only resort was to….think happy thoughts!!! Yes…like being Hokage, winning a lifetime supply of ramen….or finally getting Sakura to like me….

HAPPY THOUGHTS!!! My eyes clenched tight, I had my arms wrapped around my body. I made me slightly secured.

I..must…think of…ramen…..

**SNAP!**

My eyes flew open, and the cold air made tremble… It felt like a scene straight from a horror film. I'm sure that…there was someone behind me.

"What the hell are you doing? Dead last..?"

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"Sa-Sasuke?!?"

Sasuke sighed, running his hand through his black hair, looking away from Naruto.

"Stupid, you shouldn't be here at this time of the night."

"Says who?!"

"Me."

Sasuke's arrogance always got into Naruto's nerves, but sometimes his words would denote hidden meanings, because that is what Sasuke simply is. But—why was he hanging out in the forest when it's this late already?

Naruto could recall that Sasuke was supposed to be training with Kakashi-sensei, but that was **hours **ago. Could this possibly mean that Sasuke was here all-day training?!

His question was soon answered when he took a good look at Sasuke's left arm, which the other boy was intentionally hiding behind his back.

"Y-You're bleeding!!" Naruto exclaimed in a worried manner, pointing at the large, deep cut across the length of his arm. Naruto took  a second good look on Sasuke from head to toe, realizing that the taller boy had never looked so rugged in any of their training sessions with Sakura.

Kakashi-sensei must have overdone it this time.

"Look, this is nothing. Just—go home."

"No way! Not when you're like that!! I'm the only one allowed to beat your ass to make you look like that! Where's Kakashi-sensei? I mean, it's obvious you can't keep on training…"

"He left before me." Sasuke replied. Raising his injured arm, licking the blood away. "This is just fine." The Uchiha added.

Naruto could only wear an expression of disgust while watching the other boy. And yet, there was something oddly enticing about Sasuke's laidback side.

"What are you looking at?"

Sasuke looked up to him, his eyes having an unexplainable intensity to them, seemingly trying to burn every inch of himself into Naruto. The blonde blushed furiously, forcing himself not to look at Sasuke.

"N-Nothing…."

"Then could you at least explain why you're here?"

"Umm…..it's a long story, you wouldn't be interested."

"Good point, who'd be interested in anything about you anyway…?" Sasuke wore a wide grin on his face to further irritate Naruto. When he was to turn his back, Naruto took the opportunity to get back at him. He slowly took off one of his sandals and aimed directly at the back of Sasuke's head.

"One…two…..three!!"

**THUMP!**

Sasuke fell flat on his face, almost as if he was feeding on the grass. Naruto could only laugh in triumph, as his "rival" was "defeated".

"Sasuke, you're not as smart as you look…."

The last Uchiha could only sigh, closing his eyes still feeling the damp grass touching his face, slightly opening his eyes once more to see if Naruto was indeed off-guard. And when he did look, Naruto was still laughing his ass off.

Sasuke swung one of his legs and swiped it across Naruto's feet, who standing proudly due to his incredible exploit. Thanks to the blonde's careless attitude, he lost balance and fell flat on his back, yelping in pain.

"Stupid as ever." Sasuke mocked, getting up wiping off the dirt on his clothes.

"I swear Naruto, you are just too dense at times."

"W-What do you mean, bastard?!"

Sasuke paused for a while, his head titled vaguely downward, his long bangs hiding whatever emotion he was feeling at the moment, for his intense eyes were hidden.

Naruto got up as well, in an Indian sitting position….looking up to Sasuke standing before him.

"You're so annoying, Naruto."

"H-huh?!"

"It'd be better if you go home now. I'll stay here to finish my training."

"What do mean "finish my training"?! It's late already, you kill yourself before even get started on this damn "revenge"thing!"

The blood in Sasuke's veins boiled. "Y-You don't understand anything….Naruto!" He angrily replied. He could only feel violent anger against the man who took everything away from him.

"If you don't understand, you might as well not talk about it."   

"Sasuke…"

The forest, was home to several creatures, both good and bad. Late at night, aggressive and bloodthirsty creatures roamed freely looking for prey.

Tonight was no exception.

"Fine then, be that way!" Naruto could only say so much, because both of them had gotten so worked up about the matter. He picked up his blue sandal, walking away with one foot bare. Casually walking way, until he had stepped on something long and sleek, instantly grabbing his attention.

"What the hell?!"

He had stepped on a vicious viper, the snake's cobalt eyes seemingly glaring at him…hissing insistently. It wrapped around Naruto's bare foot, opening it's mouth allowing it's fangs to insert the poison into the boy's soft flesh. Naruto could only scream in pain.

"ARRRRRGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!"

This startled Sasuke, who was about to resume his training.

"N-Naruto?!!!"

**To Be Continued…**

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**Reviews:** (I hope you guys can understand that I can't reply to ALL of them…I'm really sorry,but I am truly thankful for them! They give me inspiration more than anything else. :3)

**Ororoooo****: **Thank you for the helpful review, I think that too. But only time can tell (and the demand of the readers as well. LOL)

**Gisela: **I'll try to keep Sasuke in character as much as possible. I'm glad you like my portrayal of Naruto-kun! o

**Ysth83: **Wai, I'm glad you think so, anyone paired with Naruto…I love…XD  [Naru-uke fan]

**Ayako****: **Woohh….a dating Simulation game?? Lol. That's awesome. I'd give anything to get a Naruto game like that!! Thatnks to review, I'm thinking of giving each character space to grow.

**Renn****: **Whee!! Kiba fan!!! XD

**Naruke: **XD! I'm sorry if it torments you too much…XD Maybe Shikamaru can help you out…[pokes]

**Native Sakura:** Hai, KibaNaru is probably one of the rarest pairings in Naruto. Sometimes I wish there was more of them….

**Author's Notes:  **I hope you guys enjoyed tins chapter….Keep those reviews coming! o  But please…no flames….I think I've put in the summary that this fic is YAOI. Sp please don't tell me hoe "sick" I am. XD


	4. Conversation

**Momento**** :**** Conversation**

**Rating: **PG-13****

**Disclaimer: **Somebody else owned Naruto,  I'm buying something else….like a nice piece of tissue paper.

**Author's Notes: **Very short chapter, that's because I enjoy separating the chapters into events. XD I felt that if I instantly added the next few "more significant" events, the chapter would drag. I promise a longer chapter next time though. I planned this story to be at least seven chappie. O.O;; I hope I can finish it before the end of vacation.  

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Heavy footsteps echoed through out the forest, stomping furiously heading for Naruto's. voice.

It was Sasuke.

Sasuke Uchiha, ran as fast as he could to the unconscious Naruto, quickly going down on his knees, picking up Naruto, slapping him to ensure he was okay.

"Naruto! Open your eyes! Open your eyes, dammit!"

Sasuke was bathed in cold sweat, every time that he would call Naruto's name louder…the other wouldn't respond. He placed his arm behind Naruto, this time shaking him, harder and harder.

Sasuke slapped his forehead in frustration; he had scrutinized Naruto's bare foot and found two sharp punctures found near the ankle.

"A snake bite?" Sasuke glanced at Naruto. "You're really stupid, you know that? Now I'll have to carry you to the hospital. Damn you."

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**Sasuke's**** POV**

I don't know if anyone else has gone through it, I don't know if anyone has felt this way. But what I am feeling right now…is unexplainable.

I have no idea why I even bothered to do this. But—right now…I was carrying Naruto on my back. The idiot got himself bitten by a snake, which is extremely stupid.

I…always called him stupid, and I always thought that I hated him…but in the end I couldn't hate him.

I could never hate Naruto.

Every ounce of my strength seemed to concentrate on my back, every single thought on my mind was about Naruto.

Everything was about him.

"Unnhh…..Sasuke?"

My heart stopped. Did I….just hear Naruto?

"N-Naruto….you're awake?" It was impossible but—It didn't matter, hearing Naruto's  voice made me give out a sigh of relief.

In this deep forest, I was glad.

"You're carrying me…" I felt him trying to let go of my grasp, but I see that he was too weak to even do that, his resistance was short-lived.

"You shouldn't be moving at all, the poison may circulate in your system faster."

"P-poison?!"  Naruto keep silent for a moment…he probably recalled what had happened about the snake.

"Sasuke, why are you helping me?"

"You shouldn't ask stupid questions like that, not at a time like this. Because…I don't know myself."

He chuckled in amusement, his laughter was an oasis I could rapture myself in, knowing that he was okay, talking and laughing.

Everything felt…Okay.

"You said that before, Sasuke. Do you remember?"

"Wind Country…?"

"Yep, you said that…"

I thought about it for awhile, I did remember that. But I never thought that he would. In fact, I always thought it was an embarrassment for him.

To be protected by someone you hated.

"I never got to say…thank you. Sasuke, I was stupid back then.I…could probably….never be as good as you."

I couldn't see his face at all, but I knew. I knew how he felt.

"Moron, didn't you say that…you were going to be a ninja, **YOUR **way? Stop comparing

yourself to me."

"Sakura-chan likes you, everyone likes you."

"And you think nobody likes **YOU**?"

He leaned in, holding tighter unto me, resting his face on my back. Naruto's body was shaking and I felt him suppressing the tears.

Where it came from, I will never know.  But I said it.

**"I like you." **

I was damn sure he was shocked. He was quiet and immobile, and I realized that I was the only one moving, walking through the forest.

"That's nice…to know…"

I smiled.

"Sasuke, I'm a bit tired…So….I'm going to close my eyes for a bit. Your back…is warm, kinda makes me sleepy."

That smile was quickly replaced by a frown. What he just said, made me worry.

"Naruto, keep on talking. I'll listen."

But he didn't talk again. The warm load I had on my back…Naruto, became cold and frigid.

Oh God.

"Hey, Naruto! Say anything, anything is fine! I'll listen to anything you have to say!"

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Uchiha's heart pumped blood through his whole body faster than ever. More than he could ever imagine.  

His mind could never think of anything else. Anything else but—Naruto Uzumaki.

His feet carried him and Naruto at an incredible speed…that was until he reached the main street.

Sasuke's body, beaten by the whole day of training and running through the deadly forest of Konoha, could not take anymore.

He realized his breathing declining and going slower.

But he never forgot Naruto. Even as he fell down on his knees, he still carried Naruto on his back.

"Just….a little more…."

Sasuke tried to force himself up, only to be in vain.

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A shadowed figure quietly walked in the streets of Konoha, raising his arms over his head, vigorously stretching his whole body even so late in the night.

He stopped on the spot, seeing two people lying down the concrete pavement.

"Ara? Isn't that—Naruto and Sasuke?"

**To Be Continued. . . **

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**Author's Notes:  **Like I said, this was a short chapter. I'm really sorry, but at least I gave a bit more of Sasunaru….XP The next [possibly] three chapters will cover the really important stuff. And…[sigh] the ending. ;


	5. Hospital Room

**Momento**** :**** Hospital Room**

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto because I'm poor and untalented enough.

**Author's Notes: **Ah yes, the calm before the storm. A short chapter once more, but the secret will be revealed in the next two chapters. XD

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Sasuke opened his eyes only to be blinded by the untainted white room. He rose from a bed, looking at his surroundings, seeing that everything was white.

"Is this a…."

"Hospital? That it is."

His head followed where the voice had come from, as he expected…it was a female nurse standing beside his bed. She smiled at him sweetly, while laying down a food tray.

"It's good to see you're awake."

Sasuke could only nod in response. The woman's gentle aura reminded him too much of his dear mother.

"Your friend is still unconscious though."

His body responded the way it should. He was shocked. "You mean…Naruto? Is he…going to be okay?"  The nurse smiled once more. "Of course he is. It's just that he's sleeping." Sasuke was relieved.  He let out a deep breath, resting his body back on the bed.

"I'm glad."

The nurse stroked his face and smiled for the third time. "You're very lucky. That boy Inuzuka found you on the streets." Sasuke looked back at her, a bit confused.

_"Does she mean Kiba?" _ He thought.

"He's keeping your Naruto friend company as we speak."

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Kiba slumped his back on the wall, Akamaru was sound asleep.

…Naruto was sound asleep.

In the middle of the night, while going out to by Akamaru food…Kiba had come across them.

Sasuke and Naruto.

"They were…probably together…like always." He murmured.

He pulled the small wooden chair behind him so he could sit beside Naruto's sleeping form. Placing his elbows on the free side of the bed, he rested his face on his palms, staring at Naruto.

"You're a really lucky bastard, do you know that?" He teased, lips forming a smirk. 

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**Kiba's**** POV**

Why did you…always…make everyone laugh?

I never got the chance ask you that…even…before. But you weren't like that before. You were…

You never needed to make me laugh to make me like you.

I hated what you were doing to yourself.

You were making a fool of yourself.

I hated everything about it.

Because, you're not.

I liked you.

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Kiba leaned in closer to Naruto, his breathing increasing pace, his face flushed, in a perfect shade or red.

"I liked you back then, Naruto. And I still like you…even now."

"Back then, you would hold on to these hands." He rose up those two hands he spoke about, waving them childishly in front of the sleeping Naruto.

"You held to them, but you always talked to someone else."

Kiba felt himself pause, thinking so deeply that his face had a large frown plastered on it. He was startled when he heard a large "Bang!" on the door, though it may have been, intentionally, a knock.

The loud bangs kept on coming until Kiba finally decided to open the goddamn door.

"Finally…"

Kiba raised an eyebrow, his hands placed on his hips.

"Oh, it's you…Uchiha."

"Get out of the way."

Sasuke pushed  him aside to run to Naruto's bedside. Kiba could only stare back at Sasuke's ample bastard qualities. But then, he saw Sasuke's worried expression…and the way the other boy had held Naruto's hands tightly.

Kiba wanted to disappear that very moment….

Just like five years ago….

Five years ago.

Kiba's session with self-pity was cut short when Sasuke's lips began to open, his eyes glaring at Kiba.

"You're not supposed to be here."

Kiba twitched at Sasuke's words.

"What happened five years ago…was your fault." Kiba retorted. Sasuke's dark eyes opened as wide as they could possibly be, he had let go of Naruto's hands and walked towards Kiba.

"Do you actually think I wanted **it** to happen?"  Sasuke grabbed Kiba by his jacket still, glaring at him with his ebony eyes, gritting his teeth, Sasuke looked was if he was ready to spit at Kiba. The Inuzuka child could only glare at him back.

"Me and Naruto didn't have to be involved, it was your own goddamn problem."

Sasuke brought up his clenched fist drawing it back and preparing of a blow, as his hands had sped onto the direction of Kiba's face, Sasuke was surprised to feel a strong force holding him back.

He looked up, seeing a tall man holding his arm tightly, Smiling at him.

"That's enough, Sasuke."

The two boys looked startled at the man who stood before them.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI?!"

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Author's Notes: **I'm sorry if this chapter came out late, but a lot of things had come up and well---yeah, I couldn't finish it on time. And so, hopefully, I could post chapters six and seven before classes start.


	6. Kyuubi

**Momento****: Kyuubi**

**Rating:** PG-13

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto…I really don't so don't sue me because I'm just borrowing them! XD

**Author's Notes: **I hope you enjoy this chapter! I tried to update as soon as I can….Hope this somehow…explains things to you people. I really hope it does.

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

The older man grinned wider, not a trace of malice written on his face. Kakashi-sensei had let go of Sasuke, and smirked at both him and Kiba. The two boys twitched, annoyed at Kakashi's behavior.

"What are you doing here, old man?"

Kakashi forced to keep his smile, hearing Kiba calling him an old man wasn't exactly a pleasant thing to hear. "Stopping you two from waking up Naruto, that's what." The Jounin walked towards Kiba patting him **very hard **on the back. "O-Ow!" The Dog boy groaned, slapping away Kakashi's hand.

"Damn old man…" Sasuke murmured. Kakashi could only sigh, somewhere in the back of his mind, cursing both boys for their lack of respect. Maybe Naruto's attitude was getting to both Kiba and Sasuke. He sighed once more.

"Sasuke, can we talk?"

"About what?"

"Iruka told me about it…"

Sasuke and Kiba's eyes grew wide. Sasuke, with his mouth half open, began (finally) to utter words.

"Y-you mean…?"

Kiba found this vulgar, he was involved too, why did Kakashi only have to talk to Sasuke?!  

"Oi! Kakashi,why are you going to have to talk to that bastard and not me?!" 

"You said it, didn't you? Whatever happened five years ago was **his** fault." 

Kiba stood stunned at Kakashi's words, face flushed, embarrassed by Kakashi's reply. By the time both left Kiba's blood began to boil, his only outlet being the wooden chair in the hospital room. He kicked the inanimate object hard, murmuring curse words. Seeing that the whole thing was futile, he just slumped his back against the wall, breathing heavily.

"Damn it."

He muttered once more, taking off his hood simply because the summer heat had taken it's toll on him.

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

"It's summer once more." The silver haired man rested his elbows on the balcony's railings smiling with a sentimental glint that could actually be seen under his black mask.  Kakashi had said something so cheesy that Sasuke could only raise an eyebrow at his teacher.

"What is it that you have to say anyway?"

Kakashi let out a deep breath, staring into the vast blue sky, pretending not to be troubled by what he was about to say.

"I know, that you are a ninja out for revenge…to simply put it….what your brother did, was unspeakable."

Sasuke could only listen intently to Kakashi's words, staring down blankly at his feet, and his sandals.

"I can completely understand that you didn't want Naruto to carry your load, your pain."

Sasuke took a firm grip on the railings, his breathing slowly increasing pace.

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Sasuke's**** POV**

Five years ago,  I had already known Naruto and Kiba…I knew Kiba through Naruto and Kiba knew me through him. I knew it sounded completely stupid. But I wasn't what I was now, five years ago.

Like Naruto, I wanted to become Hokage, I wanted to get good grades simply for that. I would go home being praised by mother and father, patting my head gently whenever I told them about my day in school. Oniichan, no, Itachi would stand there smiling at me, telling how much I was becoming so much like him.

And yes, back then, I would smile back.

On a day, just like any other day, I would hang out with Kiba and Naruto. Quietly eating my lunch. "Sasuke-kun, you're so lucky. Your mom makes you great food." Naruto aid it in an admiring tone stirred with a hint of jealousy. Kiba wasn't exactly the type who would talk to me, he was always busy feeding that damned puppy of his. Naruto would always feel that there was a growing gap between me and the Inuzuka brat.

"Anou, Kiba-kun…don't you think so?"

Kiba only nodded in response, still looking away from us. I swear, the Inuzuka boy was obnoxious. By the end of class, I decided to talk to Kiba, just to know why he was so damn rude around me and Naruto.  But I didn't expect the whole thing to turn into a violent, childish spat.

In the end, I had a black eye and Kiba had lost one of his milk tooth. I never minded Naruto, and ran on the way home.

Annoyed. But the thought pounded on my mind.

We were friends.

That day was supposed to be any other day. But something terrible happened, something I could've never imagined.

As soon as I had steeped inside the house, instead of my mother and father greeting me, my brother teasing me…there was blood splattered on the walls. And before me stood the man I called "brother.", and on the floor laid my beloved parents.

He looked down on me with a sober face drenched in blood.

But the worse was yet to come, I heard footsteps and realized--

They were Naruto's.  Itachi's head slightly turned to the same direction as mine, smiling at Naruto as he were some delectable prey.

"Is he important to you?"

That's when I realized…that I had to protect him.

But I made a mistake, I was blown away by Itachi's attack, only to stare helplessly at Naruto about to be killed. I could only clench my fist and cry as I flew straight into a wall and crashed.

I struggled to get up, to see what was going to happen to Naruto. That's when I realized…

The demon fox, Kyuubi, had awakened.

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

"Certain measures had to be taken."  Kakashi said. "You and Kiba must not again play a part in both Naruto and Kyuubi's memory…ever."

Sasuke looked up to Kakashi, with a saddened expression. "Thus, **we,** had tried ever so hard to eradicate you two from his memory. Please understand that this was to lessen the chances of Kyuubi awakening once more. This removes the Kyuubi's reason to protect something or…someone. "

Sasuke could only nod. He had remembered that Kakashi was a Jounin. And they were sent to fix the damage that both Naruto, no, make that Kyuubi and Itachi had caused. And he had recalled that he and Kiba had agreed to the "solution", and learn to keep their distance from Naruto.

"I had never taken the Chuunin exams into account. How foolish of me." Kakashi chuckled. "But then, this must be part of something called, destiny." Sasuke raised an eyebrow once more on Kakashi, while his teacher could only sweatdrop.

Right now, Naruto bothered him more than…Why had Itachi killed his whole family…maybe he was losing his mind.

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Kiba was still sitting on the wooden chair, silently peeling an apple, whistling a happy tune, occasionally poking the sleeping Akamaru on his lap.

"How many apples have I peeled?"

He questioned himself, pointing to the large plate placed by Naruto's bedside. He counted them in a soft voice.

"Eight." He smiled.  

Damn, he must've been really bored. Suddenly, Akamaru's bark  startled him. "What is it you…you…dog!" The small dog jumped from his lap to Naruto's side. He was surprised from what he had seen.

"Naruto, you're awake…"

Naruto, who was being pummeled by Akamaru's affectionate little licks and nibbles, simply smiled at Kiba.

A furious rush of emotions ran through his body, his knees feeling weak…Kiba was feeling something he had never felt before.

"Damn you, Naruto…"

Naruto was equally startled by Kiba's statement. "Hey, that isn't how you're—" But what Kiba did **shocked** him.

"God, Thank God, you're okay."

Kiba had Naruto in his arms, holding him tighter than ever, savoring the smaller boy's scent, stroking his fine blonde hair.

"Kiba?"

But the other didn't answer, still holding unto Naruto as if he was on the edge of death, and Naruto was his only cure.

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Author's Note:  **Yes, Kiba is also going to have an important part as well! XD I'll also tell who the boy Naruto first met on the next chappy! :3 More explanations on why even Kiba has to be erased from Naruto's memory as well back when they were kids. Aiie, I may not be making any sense here…xx; I'm not sure when Itachi decided to kill the whole Uchiha clan so please don't hurt me! Fanfiction is all about the possibilities…right?


	7. Relax

**Momento**** :**** Relax**

**Rating: **PG-13

**Author's Notes: **Kiba-centric…; I don't know what came over me to write a chapter like this. It's….a bit of a filler sort of chapter, focusing more on Kiba's dilemma Maybe I should go and watch the Inuzuka vs. Uzumaki fight for inspiration. Lol. I know I promised a whole bunch of other plotholes will be explained…gomen. I still hope you like this "crazy" chapter…XD  Be warned for OOC! Shino!!! o;;

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"Kiba, let go…I can't breathe…"

Naruto moaned, losing balance and falling back down to bed (with Kiba conveniently on top of him I might add). Akamaru, sensing that he may be crushed under both him and Kiba's weight, jumped away from Naruto's lap and sat down the free space found on the bed, naively wagging his tail.

"You idiot, I want to hold you like this."

Naruto blushed at Kiba's direct and daring response, trembling due to the closeness of their bodies and Kiba's emotional outburst. They lay down, silent for a time.

"Kiba…why are you doing this?"

The blonde's lips quivered just by simply asking the other, but Kiba did not answer. He kept a tight hold of Naruto, but his intention was pure.

"I just want to hold you, is that so bad?"

"No, but it's wierd."

Inuzuka shrugged off Naruto's reply, quietly moving away from Naruto. "You should be thankful a guy like me would actually want to hold you." Kiba bragged, sitting farther away, trying hard not to show his humiliation. "You're doing weird things." The blonde added.

"I never knew that hugging was a part of the things you viewed as weird."

"Not really, but hugging another guy is."

"You hug Iruka-sensei all the time."

"Well, yeah…but that really doesn't really mean anything."

"That's just because you're naïve…dense….hopelessly dense." Kiba mumbled incoherently, only vaguely to pass through Naruto's ears. "What did you say..?"  Naruto asked.

"Nothing."

His minded off to some far place, wanting to forget how stupid he is, wanting to forget that he almost ruined his peaceful, yet empty relationship with Naruto, who has forgotten every morsel of memory about him.

"Kiba, where's Sasuke?"

Kiba's eyes flew open once more, looking straight into Naruto's clueless face, annoyed.

"Oh well, he's out there, doing fine. Now if only he'd stay that way. Out."

Naruto looked at Kiba puzzled, wondering why on earth Kiba was always pissed with Sasuke, and always passing it off as loosely as he could, but the hate was still there. How very queer.

"You know, Sasuke helped me, it's actually kinda embarrassing…because now I'll have to thank him again."

"Being bitten by a snake is stupid, walking with one sandal is stupid. YOU.ARE.STUPID."

Naruto glared, throwing an apple at him (which was peacefully beside his bed), wonderfully hitting Kiba on the forehead.

**SMACK!**

Kiba screamed loudly, after being hit by the fruit he had fallen back, far back…Falling head first into the marble floor.

"Does your stupid, little goddamn brain think that I actually enjoy being saved by Sasuke?!"

Kiba frowned and looked away, rubbing his nose a bit, ignoring Naruto.

"A part of you does, I'm sure." Naruto was dumbfounded, once more, he was confused with Kibas's spontaneous, daring statements.  "You need professional help." Naruto blurted, picking up Akamaru protectively as if saying : "STAY BACK!"  Kiba could only grind his teeth together in anger, even his loyal Akamaru seemed to enjoy teasing him. He went up with his knees, folding his arms across his, huffing out.

"Bah! Why don't you just admit it?! Inuzuka roared, not in a mocking way, but rather, it is something that can be likened to a jealous eruption. He quickly got on his feet, walking closer to Naruto with a vicious look.

"For the last time Kiba, shut up! And stay away, you're scaring Akamaru!"  Naruto (bravely) responded, holding a shaking Akamaru, annoying his master even more.

"Give him back! Give my Akamaru back! I am his lawful owner and I am privileged to command you to GIVE HIM BACK!" He roared once more, but this time, it was louder than ever.

If there was once thing Kiba would be known for, it would be his short temper rivaling Naruto's…and his subtle sadistic nature.

"Aa. You are in serious need of help, Kiba."

A familiar voice pierced through Kiba's sensitive hearing, immediately knowing who it was, he turned his head to the person's direction slowly, it gave the impression that Kiba was some sort of monster out to bite anyone's head off , silently watching his prey.

"Shino! What are you doing here!?!" There was Aburame Shino, standing in the half open door holding a basket of fruits and flowers, his face still emotionless and cold, an odd (or possibly horrible) sight to behold…he laid the basket and the flowers on the table next to Naruto, paying no attention to Kiba.

His bug-infested teammate seemed to have taken well to Kiba's rudeness, he was never greeted properly by the dog-boy, Shino had an odd conclusion that this was because dogs hate fleas (which can easily be called as one of the many species of bugs)…that make them itch all over, and Kiba is worried that his bugs might do something "sinister" to Akamaru, or even Kiba himself.

 The theory was replayed all over in his head so many times that it took Shino ten whole minutes to answer back, by then Naruto was freaked out by the two.

"I came hear because Hinata was worried about Naruto-ku—I mean Naruto." Shino was quite worried that Hinata's mannerisms were infecting him, in fact, he would fidget and look down on the ground when Kurenai-sensei (and any other older female) would talk to him. Aburame shuddered a bit.

Kiba sighed again, shaking his head, feeling sorry for their one and only female member.

"That girl needs to build her confidence, for crying out loud, anyone can visit Naruto and call him a dope for being bitten by a snake."

"But it's a whole other thing to tell him you care for him, Kiba."

Kiba face faulted.

"…Just like you."

Kiba could've sworn his ego shattered into a million pieces, panic-stricken, he looked at Naruto standing before him, eyes wide open whether it was in shock or naivety, he was soon to know.

"Eh? What's that supposed to mean?"

Kiba screamed long and hard, dragging Shino out of the room hastily and forcefully. Shino could feel the pain as his teammate dragged him by the collar, turning blue for he was slowly being deprived of air. Kiba threw him off at the wall, causing Shino to (painfully) hit it.

"W-What…W-Why…H-HOW?!!"

Shino stared at Kiba blankly, a bit uninterested in Kiba's reaction. 

"I just know things, it's an intuition sort of thing. You have an easy to read personality, it's just that Naruto's…stu…er…naïve."

Kiba shook his head, frightened by Shino's all knowing, god-like presence. He could not believe that Shino himself was…more than the weirdo he knew. Dog-boy dramatically sighed, shaking Shino's hand. "I never knew you at all, Shino, my teammate!" Kiba's eyes sparkled with a fake accent of admiration.

"Look Kiba, if you really want me to shut up about how you feel for Naruto…buy me lunch."

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

"Wow Kiba, it's so awesome to have you treat us to lunch!"  Naruto and Shino happily dug their way in the hot beef pot. Kiba gave a glare at Shino while digging in as well, occasionally sharing the scraps with Akamaru. Eating on the marble floor actually made Kiba feel better.

Now if only things can stay as simple as this.

But then, Sasuke entered the room while they were eating,  the Uchiha  quite surprised with what he saw.

"Got room for one more?"

Kiba screamed.

Of course there was room for one more, thus there was no other way but for Kiba to let Sasuke share the hot beef pot with them. Kiba's only way to express his anger was to violently chew on his food, making a rather disgusting mess. Everyone else besides him let out a horror-struck expression as some bits of beef meat from Kiba's mouth almost went flying right at them, especially Shino and Sasuke.

"People who share their lunch share a very deep connection." Shino blurted out, Naruto in awe of Shino.

"R-really?!"

Kiba and Sasuke shrieked in horror.

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

A few days later  Naruto was released from the hospital, everyday enjoying the company of his fellow genins during his stay, it felt like he owed the snake big time.

Sasuke on the other hand, denied that he was even worried about Naruto, reminding himself to keep his distance. But Kiba had other plans…something entirely different from Sasuke's .

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	8. Flowers and Rain

**Momento****: Flowers and Rain**

**Rating: **PG-13

**Author's Notes: **Aiya! The next chapter came out earlier than expected! Yayness! Fanfiction.net doesn't seem to show some keyboard characters like asterisks…O.o;;  Oh well, I'll have to avoid special characters for a while…XD I'm glad you guys liked the previous chapter. I have a bad habit of making fun of people I like, especially Shino…lol. I hope you enjoy this one, the longest possible chapter in **Momento**!!! happy BGM

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Somewhere in the middle of the Konoha forest twos boys and a young girl sat on the soft grass, enjoying the beauty that was nature, the delicate breeze sweeping over them and the pleasant humming of birds resounding within.

"It's really amazing you know, people show that they care when you're on the verge of death."

How Haruno wished Naruto didn't talk about such a morbid thing while she was admiring her gallant Sasuke, who was busy ignoring both of them, giving out an occasional glare once in a while.

That glare usually meant : "Shut up, you're noisy."

Sakura just stared at Naruto, slightly perplexed by Naruto's unusual view on things. She tried to open her mouth but no words would come out., Naruto was beyond her, and everyone else's thinking.

"And you're actually enjoying that thought?" She asked.

"That I do."

Team 7 was supposed to go and train at the start of 8 o' clock in the morning, but it was high noon and Kakashi-sensei still wasn't there. Naruto lied down on the grass, frustrated on how late their teacher was.

A few more minutes and Kakashi finally popped out amongst a cloud of smoke.

Sakura and Naruto ran immediately towards Kakashi's direction with a relieved face, while Sasuke merely stood up not even greeting his teacher. He knew what to expect, Naruto and Sakura **nagged **Kakashi.

"He deserves getting nagged anyway."

Kakashi was a reasonably apprehended by the two and had to sit through a whole session of sermons from Naruto and Sakura.

 **-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

The training ended at 5 o' clock in the afternoon, Kakshi had forewarned Sasuke not to stay any longer than the rest of them. He was to return to the village at the exact time the training was over.

Kakashi immediately left with another cloud of smoke he had to rush for a talk with the other jounins. Apparently it was something that required punctuality and attendance, something that he wasn't exactly keen on.

Sakura had arranged an appointment with a Flower arrangement lesson; she was still deeply bothered by Ino being better than her when it came to the said field. And left at the exact time Kakashi did. She wanted to stay with Sasuke and wait till Naruto left so that could walk home together, very romantic indeed! But—some things must be sacrificed for ultimate superiority, especially when it came to Ino Yamanaka.

And only two were left, Sasuke and Naruto. It was quite uncomfortable; having Kakashi and Sakura around gave him a reason to put up his cold exterior. However, Naruto saw everything about him. He had let his guard down around the boy, though Naruto never did say anything about it.

"Let's go home together." He thoughtlessly said.

Uzumaki Naruto was startled with Sasuke.

It was the near end of summer, and the cold rain began to pour unexpectedly. The once gentle breeze turned into a strong, fierce gust and the two, Sasuke and Naruto were forced to seek shelter, under the roof of an old abandoned house nearby.

The Konoha street was empty, it almost looked like a ghost town, taking note of the fog that began to spread throughout.

"Oh damn, my clothes are soaked!"

Naruto raised his hands in frustration, taking a hold of his jacket and looking at it wistfully, unlike Sasuke who was quiet and didn't seem to care about having his clothes wet, his hair falling down wet along his face where you could see beads of water trailing down to his neck.

_Maybe Sasuke really doesn't mind the way he looks._

Naruto thought.

"I just washed this." The blonde added, a pout on his face, very upset. The taller boy couldn't help but chuckle in amusement at the other, but a side of his was frightened at this. Sasuke was afraid that he may never be able to keep his distance. He frowned again.

This was something he found hard to do, especially since he and Naruto were alone.

"Mou, you're no fun to talk to, Sasuke!"

But Sasuke remained silent…Naruto decided not to pay any attention to Sasuke anymore and instead leave the jerk who's been ignoring him the whole time, or so he thought.

"I'm going to make a run for it." He pulled up his jacket over his head and about to leave, his left foot outside the shelter of the roof. Then something happened, Sasuke Uchiha held his hand and pulled him back.

He and Sasuke had stood side by side, and their hands entwined, while Naruto gaped at Sasuke's boldness, the other boy  kept looking away from Naruto and fixed his eyes on the empty street and the rain that fell down.

"Let's watch the rain."

"Uhm, Yeah."

Sasuke squeezed Naruto's hand as they stood there, their faces blushing furiously, as Naruto held his hand tighter as well.

The unfortunate thing was, nothing was to be confirmed. The two remained silent, peacefully watching the rain.

"I really like you Naruto."

And that was it, Sasuke couldn't pretend much more. The feeling was genuine and he wished Naruto felt the same way too.

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

"Haruno, you're late. Lessons started three weeks ago."

Sakura shrieked, he face turning blue, stunned with disbelief. Shino was standing before her with a wide array of flowers placed in his arms.

"Y-You're taking flower arrangement?!"

Shino raised an eyebrow, annoyed at the pink-haired girl.

"It's just not me; I inform you that majority of young genin males take these lessons."

Green eyes scanned the room; she spotted a lot of them. She sighed, a bit confident. She thought that taking a flower arrangement lessons with boys as the major faction of the class composed of boys would make her shine. The only other girls were Hinata and Tenten, and they probably weren't as competitive as her.

She sat in a row where Shino sat, there sitting were Kiba, Rock Lee, Shino…and horribly enough, Neji. Haruno took into mind that it was quite weird that even Konoha boys would want to study something that was usually reserved for the females.

"So, why do you guys actually go through with this?" She asked, looking at the other four sitting with her. Rock Lee raised his hand highly, his eyes burning with a passion.

"It's for grace and beauty, Sakura-san! Gai-sensei said so!" He smiled, a sparkle as he flashed his pearly whites.

"Fighting needs grace." The male Hyuga said.

"And adds fluidity to your moves, mainly your jutsus." Shino added.

"I'm just here because I was forced to." Kiba retorted, contradicting every single reply the other three said. The truth was, they were reluctant at the mere sound of "Flower Arrangement", and used to cringe at the thought. Shino was more troubled than the others because whenever he went to the greenhouse to select flowers he would come back being flourished by butterflies.

And yet there they were, having their fourth lesson.

"I'm thinking of being a little pastel today." Neji said to Lee who was blabbering about how "cool" it would be to use oranges and yellows, Shino on the other hand was more concerned on what flowers to use, he always loved the gentle look of daisies by carnations attracted him as well. Kiba was probably the only one who wasn't interested in the said subject, a bowed down and took a nap, Akamaru sitting on top of his head.

Sakura saw this. "Finally, someone close to being normal." She whispered.

"You know Sakura-san, you should tell Sasuke and Naruto to try this, they can always catch up you know."  Lee informed her.  Haruno could on nod in response, she found the four boys quite (frighteningly) into flowers more than she thought.

Kiba was bored, but the fact that he was naturally good with arranging the cursed blossoms scares him, he'd rather chew on them, an odd habit he used to do when he was about six or seven years old, he'd practically chew on anything disregarding the fact that chewing on book paper had caused him a couple of detentions while in the Ninja Academy. 

There was a large field of flowers somewhere near the Ninja Academy that Naruto would always go to after school. And it was Kiba who was always with him. He and Akamaru would sit down somewhere just watching Naruto pick them.

The young boy would hand them to Sasuke in a half filled water bottle the next day; saying that he should hand them to his mother after school and tell her it's from Naruto.

Inuzuka couldn't help but feel jealous. Naruto paid more attention to Sasuke than him.

_It feels that I haven't really played a part in his life._

They went back a few times more, and at one time, Kiba had thought of giving something special to Naruto as well, he whispered to Akamaru, Kiba began  to pick some of the flowers, handed them to Akamaru to carry it using his mouth. The little pup hurriedly ran to Naruto and placed them on his lap.

When Naruto saw it, he stood right away and saw Kiba waving to him.

And he would smile.

Naruto's smile meant everything to Kiba before, and even now.

What happened five years ago, ruined everything he had yearned for, it was the day that decided to delete Kiba from Naruto's memory forever.

Kiba was the reason Kyuubi was awakened, as Naruto ran after Uchiha (who had  a fight with Kiba back then),he ran after Naruto, it was a constant dilemma to always feel out of place between the two.

As he ran after Naruto, he was startled to see Itachi about to attack his friend, confused on why on earth would Itachi want to kill him. A sudden impulse made him run in between to receive the blow.

Kiba was fatally injured; he remembered the look on Naruto's face as he fell down to the ground bleeding. Naruto was…crying. It was a memory etched in his heart, and he vowed himself never to make Naruto cry ever again. Those were his last fading thoughts five years ago.

_I will….tell him how I feel._

The door opened and their female teacher greeted them a good afternoon, Kiba was forced to get up and greet back. 

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Naruto and Sasuke had finally reached Naruto's place after waiting for the rain to stop. The two did not talk, but instead shared glances that obviously meant more than words. The blonde opened the locked door using the key he safely kept and proceeded to open turn the door knob.

"See 'ya."

"What I said, about how I like you. I was serious, Naruto. Please think about it."

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Author's Notes: **Author's Notes equals Rambling space! Yay! I hope you guys put up with this rant because I really love rambling about useless things! I'm not exactly a big fan of Sakura Haruno, but I had fun writing about her and the flower arrangement part. I'm glad that there are actually people who are rooting for both Kiba and Sasuke! Wow, I was scared because I didn't want Kiba to get ignored and whatsoever. I really like that Dog boy, but I think Sasuke is le hawt bishie, who (unfortunately) makes bad decisions…makes me want to whack him for making Naruto-chan upset, numerous times. I know that this chapter has more Sasunaru than KibaNaru, now that I realized it, this is a very weird love triangle, and I'm really glad you readers out there like it! :3 Hugs to all! =D


	9. Dogs

**Momento****: Dogs**

**Rating: **PG-13

**Author's Notes: **Hello! Chapter nine is out so quick because it's Saturday, and on Monday, classes start….Which means, updates will not be as often as they used to. Please keep on reviewing, it's the only way I can know if you guys still want this story or not…XD I'm upset that I'm going to have to work on this fic less because I really love what I'm doing! I was so inspired that I got to write eight pages of a fanfic, it's really an achievement! Hope you guys like this chapter, a lot of people wanted Kiba to get more of the spotlight, so here!  Thanks for all the positive feedback; you guys deserve a nice long chapter. Enjoy!

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Shino Aburame was complimented by their instructor; in fact, she was in awe of the boy's newly made "masterpiece", and coaxed the whole class to give him a round of applause. The young boy blushed and fidgeted very much like his teammate Hinata, Kiba rolled his eyes in disgust.

Shino had a penchant for older women.

The thought made Kiba stuck his tongue out as if he was to vomit, apparently, their team was made of love struck loons, including him. But then, Shino wasn't monogamous.

He set his eyes on Sakura who was told that she needed improvement; he could almost see the pink-haired girl glaring at Shino. Inuzuka could only raise an eyebrow.

When the class ended, the Konoha genins would hang out for a while, talking. Everyone needed a conversation once in a while.

"Haruno, if you see Sasuke and Naruto, tell them to try Flower Arrangement!" Lee cheered, holding both Sakura's hands and holding them to his chest.

"Uhhm…O-okay, I'll try talking them into it." What she said seemed impossible. Shino heard of this and quickly forced himself between the two.

"Please make them take the lessons, especially Naruto…Kiba will be **very **happy to see him."

Kiba, who was eating curry bread choked on his food and turned blue. He was taken to a nearby clinic.

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**Naruto's**** POV**

"Damn you Sasuke! Don't tell people things this serious!"  I couldn't concentrate anymore, I couldn't think straight even if I wanted to.

That Uchiha bastard! Who the hell does he think he is saying things like that? I closed the windows and plopped down my bed, forcing myself to sleep. I knew sleeping couldn't solve anything, I knew that sleeping will never help come up with an answer.

Confessing like some lovesick moron. The stupid Sasuke, that stupid,stupid Sasuke! I got up and pulled the blanket up to my head, tossing and turning.

All thanks to Sasuke.

All thanks to that arrogant, insensitive, know-it-all dope. Saying that he **likes **me, what the hell does he like about me anyway?! The words he said to me were the words Sakura-chan wanted to hear!

God, I hate him so much. I hate him so much, I hate him for making my heart skip a beat every now and then, uncertain of what I should do whenever he's around, and it's something I shouldn't be feeling for another boy.

WE'RE BOTH GUYS!

I can't say I love him back, I can't say it.

My life is complicated as it is, I must not let someone like Sasuke make it worse.

But then, was I selfish? Or was I throwing my happiness right out the window?

I slapped myself.

"Naruto! Do you even know what you're saying?! Sasuke is not your happiness!"

Although, having Sasuke with me gave me a reason to become a better person, I strived to change myself no matter what it took.

All thanks to Sasuke.

I held on to my pillow tight, and before I knew it, I was crying.

I was crying because loving Sasuke back will only hurt someone else. Loving Sasuke will hurt Sakura. And I can never become selfish enough to do that, because I liked Sakura, didn't I?

Didn't I?

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"So, how are you?"

"Pretty much okay, I think…"

It was in the middle of the

Two figures sat, eating in a ramen cart. One was a young boy wearing a dull, grey jacket, Kiba Inuzuka and the other was a silver-haired man who always kept his other eye hidden, the man called Kakashi-sensei.

Kiba was, as usual, with his loyal pet Akamaru and enjoying two servings of sweet potato cake. The older man however treated himself to a nice bottle of rice wine. There they sat with contentment.  Then the boy began to talk.

"Listen, I spent two weeks of my allowance on this."

"Go on."

'I risked myself getting caught by adults to get this."

"Very noble, If I say so myself"

Kiba, with his hands trembling, reached with in his coat, fingers prying within. Kakshi breathed heavily, nervous as well, his heart thumping at an incredible pace.

"Please take it! This is what I am willing to do so that you may bridge the gap between me and Naruto!" Kiba declared like a noble warrior of love, Kakashi's eyes shone.

"T-That's the—the—" Kakashi almost fell from his seat., stuttering with his words as he took a closer look at the said object.

"The Best of Icha Icha Paradise, fully illustrated, and in mint condition. It costs fifteen thousand yen but it's yours for free, Kakashi-sensei."

The jounin thought he was going to fall down on his knees, here he was, in the presence of something so divine. What Kiba had in his hands was a limited collector's item that was drawn by one of the best artists of Konoha.

All he had to do was set up the two, Naruto and Kiba. Give Kiba the chance to confess to his blonde student. It was all he had to do.

"Fine then, I'll do anything you want."

Kiba's face beamed, he could feel the world celebrating with him. He could feel victory right ahead. By the time Kiba gave the book to Kakashi, the two squealed and giggled like teenage girls.

The ramen cart owner complained, the two were too noisy and disturbed the other residents. The two simply ignored him.

Kakashi placed his arm around  Kiba and dragged his beside him.

"Give us two bottles of _sake_!"

The owner frowned. "I'm sorry to tell you this but that young boy isn't old enough to drink, sir."

Kiba's eyes turned, furious. He grabbed the owner by the collar and pulled him viciously  till they were face to face.

"I'm old enough to kick you ass though."

The owner gladly gave the rice wine, a smile pasted on his face.

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"Good Morning Sunshine!"

It was 10 a.m, the sun and the light covered the village of Konoha. Everything was at peace. 

But Naruto wasn't.

"K-Kakashi-sensei?! What are you doing here?!!"

His teacher pulled the blanket away, opened the curtains and windows. "This is another day for you to become closer to your goal!" Naruto trembled.

"You sound like Gai-sensei."

The words stabbed Kakashi straight through the heart. He paused for a moment, his backed turned to avoid Naruto's suspicious glare.

"Ah well, you see… I found the perfect sparing partner for you." Kakashi reasoned out, right after collecting the courage to face the young boy.

"Really?"

"Yes! Really! Now take a nice warm bath and go down to meet him! Wear something nice!  He's young, agile, smart, good-looking…his clan has been rather well known here. I'm hinting you the fact that he's absolutely rich!"  Instead of sounding like a convincing teacher, Kakashi sounded more like a mother who was forcing her daughter to marry someone she didn't know.

"Kakashi-sensei what you said hardly describes this guy as a good fighter."

"He's strong!"

"Oh, okay…you have my consent, Kakashi-sensei."

The older man sighed in relief when Naruto went inside the bathroom on his free will. He looked out on the window to see Kiba picking up some twigs for Akamaru to chase after.

He sighed again and took out the divine gift he received form the said boy, holding it to his chest with a dreamy look. 

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Kiba picked up another twig, Akamaru seemed bored since Kiba really didn't give enough effort to throw the darn little things hard enough and far enough. The young genin realized this, he closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He swung his arm back, the twig firmly in his hands.

"HERE!" He threw the twig with all his effort, Akamaru barked happily as he ran after the said twig that was still flying through the air.

"Ouch! Who the hell threw this stick at me!?!"

Kiba decided to open his eyes slowly, curious at to whom it was he accidentally hit. What he was to surprise him. Sasuke Uchiha held the twig in the palms of his hand, waiting for Akamaru to reach him.

The dog did indeed reach him, Akamaru wagged his tail excitedly, as if begging Sasuke to hand the stick to him. Uchiha could only smirk, he held the twig tighter and brought up his other hand to hold on to the other edge. He smiled wider at the innocent Akamaru clinging to his leg.

Sasuke Uchiha, bended the twig down and broke it into half, and broke it once more till there were four broken bits. The snapping sound seemed to echo throughout the Konoha village.

He gathered them in his hand, and like sand, allowed them to fall before the poor dog's eyes.  He laughed maniacally in triumph, pointing the stunned Kiba and Akamaru.

Kiba and his dog growled.

"And here I thought you were one of those frigid, cold bastards, Sasuke. You're crazier than I thought."

"Compared to you Kiba, I'm fairly normal."

Akamaru tackled Sasuke down to the ground, exposing his sharp fangs at boy. Sasuke tried to push him away because the dog looked like it was ready to tear his face apart.

"Arrghhh! Damn mutt!"

Kiba wore a sadistic, evil grin while watching Sasuke struggling away from "the mutt".  But that grin soon wore off when Sasuke succeeded in throwing Akamaru away from him.  

Sasuke, busy trying to get up didn't notice that Kiba was already behind him, and was preparing for the final blow. His dark eyes grew wide, and his mind began to send and automatic response.

Sasuke kicked something that both he and Kiba treasured as men, their manhood.

Flashes of white enveloped Kiba, his hands clinging unto his beloved manhood, mouth half open as he fell face down to the ground.

"What's going on?"

Something more horrific happened to Kiba, standing before him was Kakashi and—Naruto. And they had witnessed everything.

Inuzuka closed his eyes and fainted.

This was the second time this week that he would be taken to the clinic.

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Kiba awoke in a white room ever so familiar to him, he was comfortably laid down in a soft, fluffy king size bed. "W-What happened?" He asked himself, sitting up to have a better look at the place, fumbling about the blanket as he set his feet free from the cloth so he could sit comfortably.

'No need to worry you can still use it."

He shifted his head to the left and was shocked to see Naruto sitting by his side on a chair. The blonde wasn't in his usual ninja garb, instead, he had his head protector off and his outfit was composed of the trademark blue shirt and white pants.

"Use what?"

"Y-your….thing."

"What thing?"

Naruto blushed a bit as he pointed down at Kiba's groin.  Kiba's face turned red not knowing what to say.

"T-that means I can use it Naruto! I can use it anytime I want! I can have sex whenever I want! " 

Unfortunately he wasn't as sharp and smart as Sasuke, his answer sounded lewd and perverted, that's why Naruto punched him in the face, Kiba's nose was bleeding.

"Why would I want to use that with you?!"

"I-I mean….You misunderstood, what I actually meant was, well….That's great!"

Naruto moved away, looking for something to stop the bleeding. He luckily found himself a towel and damped on the bottom of Kiba's nose.

"I just wish you knew what you were saying."

Kiba's heart pounded, whenever Naruto would get dangerously close to him. He breathed harder and harder each time. To control himself was an achievement in it's own right.

"You took care of he before, it's only right I return the favor."

Naruto blurted out, unknowing of Kiba's self restraint. After finished wiping away the blood, Naruto leaned in to the farther side of the bed, pulling the blanket over Kiba's lower half of his body.

"Kakashi-sensei said that he'd contact Kurenai-sensei to take care of you."

It wasn't surprising that Kiba didn't think before he acted, in fact, at times it was his strong point. It made him cunning and unpredictable, very much like now.

"Nah, I'm actually enjoying myself with you taking care of me." He said, propping himself up with the use of both his elbows, he let out a sweet smile, Naruto chuckled, trying to hide his own shock.

"Yeah right, quit teasing."

"I'm not teasing! I'm being perfectly honest with you. I like you."

I like you. How could two people, namely Sasuke and Kiba say something so easily? Naruto wanted to whack his head upside down, but instead, he let out another laugh as he finished fixing the blanket.

Naruto took caution to keep his distance from Kiba and sat back on his chair, pouring hot tea into a wooden cup. "So then, What do you like so much about an idiot like me?"

"You're cute, you smile a lot, you aren't entirely useless and pretty much a nice person."

"That's not a good enough reason, Kiba. If you haven't noticed, I happen to be a guy."  It was to fight off Kiba's direct honest feelings. Being a guy was a good enough reason why Kiba shouldn't like him. Just like Sasuke. 

"And why should that matter?"

Naruto almost sprayed the hot tea out of his mouth if he hadn't controlled himself. Kiba frowned.

Uzumaki gulped the tea down, fast. His hands a bit shaky while placing it back to the table.

Inuzukas were passionate people, intense and focused on things they had their eyes on. They were aggressive and ferocious, possessive and obsessed. Kiba carried out these traits perfectly as a person.

"I-I have to go, Kiba."

But Kiba could never possibly allow that. The taller boy pulled Naruto down and his intense eyes forced the other look at his straight at the face. The blonde could on tremble in Kiba's arms.

Inuzuka brough his hands up to cup Naruto's face so that their eyes would meet. The taller boy lowered his head and darted on Naruto's neck. He opened his mouth, sucking on the milk white skin.

The moment lasted for a few minutes but it seemed eternity for the both of them. Kiba drew back, and what he left on Naruto's skin was a red, throbbing spot.

Kiba Inuzuka had marked the boy as his own.

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**Author's Notes: **I see an insanely jealous Uchiha somewhere….hmm…the smell of jealously reeks within the village of Konoha! [laughs] Review please, I was afraid of writing this chapter. Believe it or not,  I can't write a decent kissing scene to save my life. Arrggh, it's so hard. XP


	10. Sun

**Momento: Sun**

**Rating: **PG-13

**Author's Notes:** [peeks head out] Whew! Like I said, updates are slower, since school has started. Like I said before, **NO FLAMES**, Why can't some people understand that? [rolls eyes] It's very annoying. Flames will be deleted from the reviews page because it's downright rude. Anyway, whew! Thanks for everyone's awesome reviews on last chapter! Woot! XD

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"What's wrong?"

Naruto placed both hands, caressing the sore spot on his neck, eyes downcast in embarrassment, his heart filled with the wildest swirl of emotions, his chest tightened at the thought.

What had Kiba done to him? Why had Inuzuka done something like that?! Naruto never knew why he had felt so offended, in fact, he felt defiled. The blonde wrapped his slender arms around himself, shaking.

Thoughts violently pierced his mind, all not comprehendible to the boy.  All he knew that these thoughts were nowhere near pleasant, they were nightmarish and dark. They were possibly the very essence of the worst times of his life.

His hands moved up to his head, digging through his hair.

It was all too clear for Kiba that Naruto was in pain.

"D-Did I…do something wrong?" Kiba knew all too well that what he had done was insane. He regretted it, but his regret obviously wouldn't make things any better.

"Just stay away, from me."

"What?"

"I told you to stay away from me!" Naruto pulled away from the other boy, stumbling and hastily running to the door. Kiba ran after him, but unluckily lost his balance, falling down on the slippery floor in the hallway.

Flat on his back, his eyes saw that spectators began to notice the spectators gathering around him.

"What the hell are you looking at?!"  He exclaimed, startling the people who later decided that Kiba wasn't worth their attention. "Dammit!" The boy muttered curses as he went up on his feet, feeling the pain, specifically on his behind.

"What on earth did you do, you freak?!"

Kiba knew who it was, at some point, he felt fear to hear that voice.

Uchiha Sasuke was behind him, hovering with a dark aura that was like an omen of incoming death. But Kiba was a fool (or so they think), and confronted the other boy.

"What did you do to Naruto?" Sasuke repeated.

"That really isn't supposed to be any of your business."

"Oh that's weird, I always thought it was."

The tension began to build up, and the two had their faces dead serious.

"Let's take this outside, dog boy."

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**Naruto's POV**

Here I am, in one of the few wonders of the world…the beautiful, Konoha village! Note that I am speaking this in a sarcastic tone, where the two of the biggest morons on earth reside, Kiba Inuzuka and Sasuke Uchiha.

I, Naruto Uzumaki, had too much.  I have finally lost my patience, I sit in a new ramen house, drowning my sorrow in Miso.

If I cry, I'll be a crybaby. So I shouldn't cry.

Iruka-sensei says so.

Naruto-kun mustn't cry.

So I won't.

No matter how much it hurts me not to, I won't.

I never wanted this to happen, this was something a girl would want, not a twelve year old scrawny boy like me.

 Not an aspiring Hokage like me.

Maybe I shouldn't have asked for love, Iruka-sensei gave enough, he was a father, brother and teacher to me. I shouldn't have wished for anything more.

Now I have two morons after me. And I never asked for it.

Kiba went way too far. It wasn't funny anymore. If I misinterpreted Kiba's hickey planting for something malicious rather than friendly…Boy, Inuzukas sure do have the weirdest customs.

They both said: "I like you." As well! Damn them.  Well, sure they did say it in a different manner, Sasuke always seemed to hold back on those feelings, he made me feel like I was on the edge of my seat in suspense. Kiba, on the other hand, must've have thought over for quite some time…probably a minute or so, hen decided to say it bluntly with an idiotic face that would make me fall off my seat.

I pounded my hand on the table, digging through my hair in frustration once more. 

Why can't those two get out of my head?!! 

Strange enough, memories began to haunt me more often.

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Somewhere in the clinic's secluded area, Sasuke and Kiba told there discussing important matters….to them at least.

"I wanted to hear it straight from you."

"Hear what?"

Sasuke found this a perfect chance to know what exactly was going on. He wanted to confirm things, rather to be left confused and at times, clueless on the events that quickly took place the last few days.

"I'm not stupid. But I wanted to know…rather than speculate."

"So what's you point? What is it exactly do you want to know, Uchiha?"

"Your feelings regarding Naruto."

The both paused, rather awkward with one another. Kiba answering that question took every ounce of courage he had.

"I like Naruto, I've always liked him."

"So do I."

 Kiba laughed.

 "I may hate you for that, In fact, I already hate you Sasuke. But I can't stop you from liking Naruto either."

Sasuke only let out a deep breath, irritated yet relieved.

"That makes us contenders for Naruto's heart. We are competitors trying to win his love!" Kiba announced shamelessly. Sasuke began to wonder if being cheesy and abnormal reeked in the Konoha male genins these days.

"You did something stupid didn't you? Kiba…?"

"What do you mean?"

"I saw it."

Apparently Sasuke had witnessed it by peering through window while sitting atop a nearby tree branch, his initial motive was obviously watching over Naruto. Kiba said it was more of stalking; Sasuke denied since he thought it was more of "guarding" rather than "stalking". Kiba let out a "pfft" and ignored the other's statement.

Without warning, Sasuke threw a kunai at Kiba's face, barely missing. It created a long gash, the blood trickled down the Dog master's face; which was contorted due to shock and disbelief at the Uchiha's sudden maneuver.

"Do that again and I will be stabbing that kunai through that throat."

The Inuzuka gulped, but perfectly concealed his fright and laughed maniacally.

"Yeah right! Mwahahahahaha!"

His laughing was cut short when somebody threw a rock at him, directly at his poor little head. He turned around to see an annoyed Kakashi, serious but annoyed.

"Why'd 'ya do that?! You old perverted man!!!"

Kakashi disregarded the fact that Kiba called him a perverted old man, this was because something bothered him more than his status.

"Have you seen Naruto?"

"Y-yeah, but he..errm…kinda left." Kiba responded.

The two boys sensed something dreadful with Kakashi's facial expression. And their fears were soon to be known.

"Itachi is said to be in Konoha."

Itachi himself spelled out the worst of things to happen.

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After having his fifth and final serving of miso soup, Naruto went out for a walk down the streets of Konoha. Though Konoha itself had began to embed Sasuke and Kiba within Naruto's mind, though he wanted to forget about the two, he found it comfortable, thinking of the two assured him that he wasn't alone.

That somebody did indeed love him deeply, much more than in a platonic manner, disturbing considering that the two were boys but oddly warm at the same time.

He stopped at a small arc bridge above the small, crystal clear lake that reflected the sky perfectly. Naruto looked up to view the sunset; the red sky was as beautiful as ever.

"You like looking at the sunset?"

He was startled, quickly tuning to see who it was who was talking to him; or if it was indeed him being addressed.

A tall young man stood beside him, clad in a black cloak, he had two markings below both his eyes, and his lips wore a seemingly honest smile. But this didn't concern Naruto.

It was his uncanny similarity to the boy Sasuke that struck the blonde.

On the back of his mind, Naruto was sure he had met this man before.

"Who are you?"

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**Author's Notes: **Things will be darker, I think. O.o; I know Itachi…he's there, well, you know, he actually is kinda involved. XD  [receives death glare form the older Uchiha] Oh well, I want to throw Gaara in but that's kinda impossible, as for the moment…[cries] I need Gaara-kun! (Please ignore me) XXD


	11. Memories

**Momento****: Memories**

**Rating: PG-13**

**Author's Notes: **Hello there! I'm alive and kicking! [Not really but anyway…] Hope you guys enjoy this chapter! XDI looked through some screencaps of Kiba without his jacket! **OMG! HE'S SO HOT!!!!!!!!** [fans self]Aiyyaa…..Naruto is so kawaii….Sasuke is hot in a physical sort of way…XD I must make a ShinoIno gif now……XD

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"There's no such thing as coincidences, though it upsets me that you can't remember me."

Naruto flinched as the older man tried to reach out to him. He stepped back defensively; the man's gentle face did not fool him. There was malice and deep-seated intensity in his eyes. A demon could tell.

"Adorable as always."

Itachi looked to the direction of the sunset and lake for such a long moment that Naruto decided to look at what was really with the sunset. Naruto was in awe, the sunset…he thought sceneries like these could only be seen in paintings.

"You should know, this wouldn't be the last time you'll see me."

The wind blew strong, bordering on the violent. Uzumaki closed his eyes, holding both arms in front of his face, a normal body mechanism for self protection.  

When the wild zephyr ended, all that was left standing in the little wooden bridge was Naruto himself.

"N-Naruto?...."

"Huh?"

"NARUTO!!!"

Iruka-sensei ran to him worriedly, giving him a big, tight and fatherly hug, the jounin had gotten so carried away that he almost lifted Naruto off the ground.

"T-This is embarrassing, Iruka-sensei….!"

"Who cares?! All that matters is that you're safe!!!" The jounin cried.

Naruto rolled his eyes, but deep inside, seeing Iruka-sensei made him feel safe. That man he just met harbored with him dark passion and desire that radiated throughout no matter how hard he tried. Naruto felt fear at the sight of him.

Kakashi, Sasuke and Kiba were also there. The two boys, restrained themselves for the bigger good of all things; but smiled after seeing Naruto.

"Maybe it is time that we, give you back what we took from you." Naruto looked at Kakashi baffled.

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"T-That's…impossible!"

The silver haired jounin sighed, rasing his hand up the shocked Naruto, gesturing the demon boy not to do anything violent as they spoke confidentially. It was so confidential that even Iruka wasn't allowed to join in. The two were in Kakashi's apartment sitting in a large couch; casually enough as to not raise suspicion if anyone were to see them there.

"But it happened. And I only tell you the truth Naruto."

 The blonde shook his head in disbelief.

"Y-You're telling me that a whole chunk of my childhood memories were…erased?! Why?! There's not even a good enough reason to do that!"

"There is, the people you loved as a child. They held the key to the Kyuubi's untimely awakening. The Konoha village could never risk that."

"But--why?"

"Because, as a child your emotions will remain to take control of the things you do. Kiba and Sasuke, they were a part of your life too."

Naruto slumped back at the other end of the sofa, placing a hand over his forehead in aggravation. Kakashi found it hard telling every single supposed truth to his student. The boy's head was spinning.

"Listen Naruto, when we erased parts of your memories, it was placed in a specific place…The village leader, he says that it may be allowed that we, give you back what is lost."

Uzumaki blinked once, then twice.

"Y-You mean?!"

Kakashi nodded, smiling, patting Naruto's head very much like an affectionate teacher.

How had they managed to delete Naruto's memory? Kakashi remembered as entered within the hospital wing, he saw the slumbering young boy and felt a squeezing pain in his chest. He had to remove from the child's mind everything that his innocent eyes saw as an important part of his life.  The village leader bowed to him and begged him to "mend the wrongs" of the child and have his memories stolen away.

Kakashi back then, could not do anything to go against such orders. He placed his palms over the boy's forehead, chanting a mantra that were sure to remove these recollections and as he was about to finish, the room was bathed in bright white light.

Emerging from the boy's chest was perfectly crystal clear orb.

 The vial of his memories.

The village leader immediately took his, preparing to crush it down to the ground, but Kakashi stopped him.

The jounin knew that, perhaps one day, the boy could have back something rightfully his. It was kept in an old temple set with traps if anyone were to attempt stealing it. Guards were added for full security.

The temple would be somewhere within the edge of the Konoha forest, and Kakashi would simply take three days to retrieve it, since the village leader had already given him permission.

But it was needed.

He warned Naruto of things to come.

"Giving your memories back, will be painful."

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"You'll be fine." The two boys, Kiba and Sasuke said in chorus. They both had their arms over their chest, and they both blushed furiously.

"Eh?

 Naruto cocked his head to the side as the three sat on a bench somewhere in the Konoha park. The blonde was rather (in) conveniently in the middle. 

Sasuke winced. Kiba yawned.

"When you get your memories back, you can remember both of us. So, we're really kinda…hoping everything will be okay."  Kiba added. For once in his life, Sasuke agreed with the Inuzuka and nodded.

Now wasn't exactly the right time for their rivalry.

Naruto was relieved that he didn't have to see the two fighting over him; because that would be incredibly weird.

"Me and Kiba, we really, want you to remember us." Sasuke whispered to Naruto's ears as they watched Kiba chasing around Akamaru you ran off with his last piece of bread.

Naruto blushed.

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Blood covered the walls and within the ruins of a once sturdy old temple were two men.

Itachi and his right hand man, Kisame.

In his hands he held the most precious thing as for the moment. A vial of memories, Naruto's memories.

"I can never risk enough to keep that boy."

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**Author's Notes:**

**Me:** What's going to happen now?! XD

**Kiba****:** You're the author! You should know! [whacks Strawberry Goo] But you can always hook me and Naru-chan up and throw Sasuke down a cliff!

**Sasuke****:** Shut up! You Horny dog! [kicks Kiba]

**Naruto**: . . . . I want Iruka-sensei!!! [cries]

**Me**: So yeah! I hope you guys like it! Next chappy will take longer than usual though!

**Shino:** [pokes Strawberry Goo] Write fics about me and my bugs. **Now.******

**Me: **I'll write about you, your bugs and Ino! [in bliss]****

**Ino****: **O.O;;  [clings to her okaasan]


	12. Days

**Momento****:** Days

**Rating:** PG-13

**Author's Notes:** I feel the unbelievable sort of writer's block slowly creeping out to me. Wait, is there…really such a thing as writer's block? No really, is there? :sees Itachi marching to her with a mallet:

**Reviews:** Minna-san! I will be answering back some questions more frequently if it's okay with you guys if I answered back using the  review option, but first I want to know if it's okay with you readers! :3 That way I can answer questions and comments faster. So you don't have to wait for the next chapter for answers! ****

**Kaiyo**** No Hime:** Forgive me! :sobs:

**Iceheart19:** Sankyu! I made a mistake about Iruka being a jounin…..;; :places head in a large hot steaming pot of rice: I deserve this! XD 

**Yuen-chan:** Lol. Shino deserves some of the limelight too! But Don't think that he will be playing such a part in here….:pats Shino's back: :Shino starts sobbing and mumbling about how unloved he is:

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"I was thinking, Kakashi-sensei, maybe I should come with you."

Before he had began to realize, Uchiha Sasuke was becoming a young, mature man. He could see through his student's eyes the desire to protect and to fight for something, or someone he loved. The jounin smiles as he closes the small bag he is to wear on his back, for the travel ahead of course.

Kakashi nodded his head, placing a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, his hidden smile not so hidden.

"Itachi may be there."

And the jounin frowns again. The boy was disillusioned between the love for Naruto and the hatred for his brother, Itachi. But what he feared was Sasuke knew that Itachi was indeed after the Kyuubi's power.

If ever—Naruto loved Sasuke back.

When the time came that Sasuke was so drunk with revenge, Kakashi wished that the boy would never resort to using Naruto for his own whims. 

That would be absolutely unforgivable, and Kakashi, as the years will pass by, will have to watch over the last Uchiha.

But for now, let Naruto have a blissful moment, at least, once they return his memories.

"Sasuke, say your goodbyes."

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"It won't be forever, it'll just be, for three days. And it's not like Itachi's really after any one of us."

"But you want him to be there. STUPID ASS."

Sasuke is taken aback, Naruto had already known him too well, the midnight air was colder than usual and crickets and frogs chose to stay silent.

The dark little apartment (rented by Uzumaki) was their sanctuary, Sasuke held Naruto's hands and laughed, an event that happened ever so rarely. Naruto, who sat on the bed, and Sasuke who knelt before him…they always, or more correctly, used to be together.

Kakashi advises that naruto should stay in a safe place than to join them to retrieve his orb of memories. Having Naruto with them may lure Itachi to them.

Which was highly undesirable.

The blonde wanted to be with Sasuke so much.

Perhaps intuition had forewarned him of an ill-fated event that may possibly happen.

It was all too much of a risk to take. 

It was too big a risk to let Sasuke and Kakashi go. Not when Iruka had told him about Itachi, Sasuke's older brother. The man had allegedly killed the whole Uchiha clan, something not to be taken lightly.

"Maybe you shouldn't come, it's not worth it."

Sasuke blinks, and then holds Naruto's hands tighter, he holds them up guiding them to touch his face. 

"Everything should be _perfectly_ fine."

"You're lying…you're such a bad liar! Sasuke, I swear, if you die out there…I will kill you!"

The Uchiha laughs at the illogical dialogue.

But he never lets go of Naruto's hand.

"I will come back."  

It was 3 o' clock in the morning when the two decide to leave. Naruto pretends and says he's asleep, but he secretly watches through the window pane as Kiba shakes Sasuke's hand, smiling in a friendly manner. Even Inuzuka didn't want Sasuke to die. But when he said this, Sasuke knew that Kiba enjoyed exaggerating things more to what they should be. Iruka takes out from behind his back a medicine kit, opening it and telling Kakashi what each of the things inside did. It took fifteen whole minutes off their time.

They wave and say goodbye, unknowing of Naruto who watches them secretly. As they leave, the young boy sobs.

Why had he have to be so useless at a time like this?

Naruto sobs till morning, because his heart aches because on what may happen is something he did not see.

He worries.

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The next day, the afternoon was hotter than ever, the fluctuation between the weather was frustrating.

Naruto sits alone in the park bench, Kiba Inuzuka watches him.

He knows he's in pain, and it pains him as well.

Perhaps reality was slapping him with the truth.

Naruto, maybe he did love Sasuke more than him. The way the blonde reacted to his advances…..Naruto shunned him away.

Reality was painful but Kiba would never let that poison his mind and heart, he walks towards Naruto and pats him on the back at sits beside him.

"He'll be just fine, before you know it; he'll be stomping back here."

Naruto didn't respond, but Inuzuka kept on talking anyway.

He points his finger to the Konoha main road and smiles wider, atop his head sits Akamaru who barks at the said road.

"He'll be walking there and shouting your name."

"He won't be shouting my name."

"Yes he will, that is…if he wants to. That moron isn't made of ice or glass."

Kiba looks at Naruto, and realizes on more thing, his mark hasn't faded, his heart beats faster and head starts spinning. A traitor would take this chance and steal the thing he wants the most in the perfect of moment of all moments.

He tries to touch him but pulls away.

That would be…so spineless.

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Sasuke pants, the mountain gets steeper and steeper and the gravity pulls his weight down, not to mention that there was a large bag riding his back. Sometimes he thought of dropping the thing, but was reminded that it had everything necessary for the trip, a medicine kit and food.

Sasuke pauses.

"DAMN YOU KIBA! YOU DIDN'T EVEN MENTION YOUR FOOD PILLS!!!"

Kakashi is wide-eyed at the Uchiha, startled. The jounin realized that if Kiba did give them food pills they wouldn't have to bother with carrying the food they had. And the load would be much lighter.

Stupid little dog boy.

They curse all the way up the mountain, scaring the animals even the large ones. In fact, Sasuke's burning anger was too much to bear for anyone.

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"Will he be okay?"

Iruka asked Kiba worriedly as Kiba entered his apartment, but he doesn't give an instant answer. He breathes deeply while looking at the plain ceiling…

"If Sasuke does come back, he will."

Iruka looks away, rather uncomfortable with Kiba's answer.

"I'm sorry, Kiba…I know how you feel. I'm sure that…"

"What are you talking about?!  I'm not jealous at all, that would be stupid, I just wish I could do the same for Naruto."

"But just by staying with him, you're already doing something for Naruto."

Kiba gives out a sad look at Iruka.

"I'm doing nothing for him at all."

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**Author's Note: **So there you have the end of chapter 12.  I'm not into love triangles/polygons but I always seem to make them, unknowingly. LOL. Thanks for reading and I hope you guys enjoyed it! 


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